Twelve months after losing to Bristol Rovers on penalties, Grimsby return to Wembley in a bid to return to the Football League.

Town have now been in the National League for six seasons and Mariners fans can’t take any more heart-break, although Forest Green will be a tough nut to crack after overcoming Dover in their semi-final.

Rovers actually dispensed with manager Adie Pennock just before the end of the regular season and it appears that they will hire Mark Cooper this week ahead of this one-off match upon which the whole season depends.

Forest Green finished nine points ahead of Grimsby in the regular standings although this owed much to a flying start for the Gloucester side who were gradually reeled in by Cheltenham. It’s also worth noting that Town beat FGR in their most recent clash by a slender 1-0 scoreline.

Scott Bartlett then saw them over the line against Dover thanks to a 2-1 aggregate victory, with Rovers likely to keep things tight against a team who have plenty of goals in them.

Padraig Amond finished joint-top scorer of the division and he will be ably flanked by Omar Bogle who scored the winning goal in extra-time against Braintree.

Indeed, the belief that will come from turning the tie on its head could work in Grimsby’s favour, even if they have to try and penetrate a defence that has shown itself to be robust for much of the season.

Ultimately, it could be a tight affair with so much resting on the game. Irrespective of whether Cooper arrives to take charge of Forest Green, we feel that Grimsby might just get over the line and we’ll back a 1-0 victory.